Building Bridges
by luvtvnbooks
Summary: With Linda already strugling how will she cope with Britney getting ill? And will she finally learn to trust the two adults?Linda needs Lenny, and with the teens new illness shge realises how important it is to have friends like him.
1. Chapter 1

"Britney, where's the rest of my change?" Linda exclaimed as she rushed to get breakfast ready.

"I wanted another drink!" .Britney replied.

"I already gave you two!"

"And she took mine" Joe said quietly. Linda shook her head, worried about the teen. She put out three plates and glasses of milk, noticing how quickly Britney finished everything.

"Hurry up, Lenny's waiting" .Britney and Joe grabbed their bags and went out to his car.

"Thanks for giving us a lift" Britney told him.

"It's okay, you alright?" he said with a frown, noticing how pale and tired Britney looked. She had been very quite lately and he was worried about her. He made a mental note to speak to Linda later.

"Yeah, I'm fine". Lenny dropped them off at school and went to the hospital. He spotted Linda and walked over.

"Thanks again Lenny, it's a great help" she smiled.

"It's no bother, is Britney sleeping alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, I think so why?"

"Well, she just looked a bit tired this morning".

"She did seem a little off, but she finished her breakfast quick enough and she's taken extra money for food and drinks". They both thought for a minute before deciding she was probably just being a teenager.

Later that evening

Linda had invited Lenny over for dinner; she knew he couldn't cook for himself anyway. It was her way of repaying him.

"Britney, hurry up!" she called. Britney came in looking even worse than before. She was pale and seemed to be having trouble balancing. After a plate of pizza and two glasses of water she seemed to be in better spirits. Eventually she joined in the conversation and was quite happy. She went to her room to finish homework and Joe asked Linda for help with his. Lenny watched tv for a while, he got bored and went to see what Britney was up to. Making his way to her room he found her slumped over a pile of books.

"Britney? Britney !" he began to panic. She blinked a few times before focusing on him.

"Huh?"

"Are you okay?"He said frantically.

"Yeah, umm I just fell asleep that's all" She told him.

"If you're sure". He wasn't sure what to think but he had a feeling Britney hadn't fallen asleep. Surely she would have moved to a more comfortable place before sleeping. She scrunched her forehead and told him she had a headache, he went to get her some painkillers as she reached for her water bottle again. She had almost finished the whole bottle by the time he got back. He handed her the two white pills and told her to get into bed. As she climbed under the covers Lenny decided to question her again.

"Are you sure you're okay? You know you can tell me, I am a doctor you know" he smiled.

"I just don't feel very well, it'll pass. I know I can talk to you, it's just, well, I don't really like hospitals" she smiled nervously. She hated that it was her only weakness. Anything else she could deal with, but hospitals, doctors anything remotely medicine related and she freaked out. Lenny nodded in understanding; he knew it took a lot to admit that.

"That's okay, but you know I'll never hurt you?" she nodded in response.

"Good, promise me you'll tell me if you feel any worse?" again she nodded. After all, she did feel pretty terrible. She liked Lenny, despite him being a doctor and all. Deep down she loved Linda too. The pair were finally getting along but Britney just wasn't ready to trust another motherly figure. Britney knew Linda was nothing like her mum but she couldn't be sure. Hit with another wave of pain she shut her eyes and eventually got to sleep. Lenny found Linda tidying up in the kitchen.

"Hey, Britney's not very well I've given her some painkillers".

"Thanks Lenny, I'll go check on her later. Why don't you stay the night? It'll save you going all the way home just to come back". He thought about it and nodded.

The next morning.

Britney stumbled into the kitchen. She felt even worse than yesterday. She decided she would tell Lenny if he brought it up. He set a plate down in front of her, studying her closely. She sighed in defeat.

"I feel worse" she admitted. Her hands were shaking as she liked her fork. Her vision kept going blurry and quite frankly, she was worried.

"Alright, I'll say to Linda and get you checked out"

"Could you do it?" She asked Lenny hopefully. She didn't trust anyone else.

"If Linda brings you by after school".

Lunchtime

It was just before lunch and Britney was having a really hard time concentrating. The teacher was now staring at her, her lips were moving. Britney realised she was speaking to her. Her eyes rolled as she lost consciousness and hit the desk.

At the ED

Lenny rushed over to his next patient who was currently being wheeled in. He glanced down and was totally shocked.

"Britney?"


	2. Chapter 2

I should have mentioned, I wanted Britney to be a bit older so she's 14,making it 1 1.2-2 years since Linda got them. Don't own anyhing

Britney's eyelids fluttered and as she opened her eyes she was greeted with the sight of a very panicked Lenny. She had to giggle a bit, he just looked so ridiculous.

"You have no idea how worried I've been!"

"I could guess" she smiled.

"Linda's on her way in, I'm just waiting for your test results."

"I'm fine probably just dehydrated" she sighed, she hated being stuck in hospital.

"Yeah, I doubt it. Nice try though" He was relieved she was awake, seeing her talk relieved him a little. He had now idea how Linda was going to react. He was a little worried. At that very moment Linda burst through the doors and came running over.

"Britney! What the hell happened?"

"I don't know, I feel fine though!" the teen was getting annoyed at all the attention. Both adults shot her a look that clearly said they didn't believe her. She was telling the truth now, she didn't feel anywhere near as bad as before.

"Yeah, well we'll find out when the results come back won't we" Lenny said. He was a little hurt that she hadn't came to him earlier, they had spent two years building up trust that seemed to be worth nothing.

"You know you could have text either one of us, we knew you felt bad but not like this!"

"It was a bit sudden; it's been coming and going"

"How long?" Lenny asked.

"Couple of weeks" she admitted.

"Britney!"he couldn't believe she felt she couldn't speak to them.

"Sorry, but you're just so busy and I didn't want us to become too much of a burden" Lenny was like an older brother to her, a very crazy one at that. Lenny felt guilty, he and Linda had been taking more shifts recently and hadn't had much time for Britney and Joe.

"Britney, no matter how bratty or irritating or how much work you and Joe are, I would never let you go back into care" Linda reassured her. Both of them couldn't believe the teen had gotten this ill without them noticing. A nurse came in and handed her test results to Lenny. He read them quickly and sighed. This was what he's been worried about.

"Britney, you have type 1 diabetes. Do you know what that is?" He remember helping her with a school project about a year ago, he just hoped she remember it.

"Yeah" she was finding it hard not to cry. She was petrified of hospital and she knew she would be spending a lot more time here. Not to mention the needles. She wasn't sure she could cope with all of this.

"I'll refer you to a colleague who will tell you everything, I'm sorry Brit"

"It's okay" she sniffled, after all it could be worse. Diabetes wasn't deadly and most people got used to it.

"You'll most likely have to stay here for a few days until you can manage your insulin on your own" she sighed expecting this. Linda moved to hold her hand.

"It'll be okay, you've got a doctor and a nurse watching you. We'll help" she felt helpless. She knew how hard diabetes was on a teen and Britney had already had a hard life.

2 days later

Britney was finally leaving, after two days of nonstop lectures about her eating and lifestyle. She had begged and pleaded to get out, only succeeding when she told her doctor she had Linda and Lenny to help. She'd had quite a few visitors from the ED. Nick Jordan was quite a surprise but Britney found she got on with him easily. They had all offered their help. The only person who hadn't visited her was Lenny. She had no idea why though.

2I'm sorry Britney, I just feel a bit guilty that we let it get this far". Britney was sick of them thinking it was their fault. Everyone was making a big deal over nothing, she could handle this. Linda had said she could have a week off school so she could keep and eye on her. Her and Lenny had both asked for days off so there was always someone with her. Britney sighed as she climbed into the car. This was goig to be one long week.


	3. Chapter 3

Britney felt herself being shaken awake. It had been 3 days since she had been diagnosed with diabetes, it hadn't been too hard. But this morning she felt terrible, her head hurt and she felt really shaky. She opened her eyes to see Linda.

"Britney, Christ you look terrible!"

"Gee thanks" Linda smiled.

"You know what I mean, are you feeling alright?" she asked.

"Not really, I feel a bit shaky can you get me something to eat?"

"Sure, give me a minute". Britney tried to remember what her blood sugar was the night before. Struggling to think clearly she gave up and decided it was low now anyway. Lenny came in and sat on her bed.

"Hey kiddo, mind if I check your blood sugar?" Usually she did it herself but she couldn't hold her hands still. Gratefully she nodded. He took her finger and told her to look away. She wasn't a fan of the blood. As he put the strip into her metre Linda came in with some food and a bottle of juice.

"It's low, but it's not too bad" Lenny said. This was the first time her blood sugar levels had been abnormal. It wasn't a good feeling. Lenny pulled her into a hug.

"It's okay, you can't help it." He tried to reassure her. Linda nodded in agreement.

"We don't expect you to have it perfect, just controlled" she told her. Britney felt a little better after eating. Joe came bounding in and jumped onto the bed to sit with his sister. They had to have a very long conversation with him about being careful around the house. There were plenty of needles lying about and the last thing they needed was for him to get hurt. Britney couldn't help but think the diabetes had brought her and Linda closer. Lenny had always been like a big brother, he knew how she was feeling and could help. Linda took a little more work. It took a while before Britney could see her as a parent. She had another 4 days off school and couldn't help but enjoy the time off.

It was Linda's day off; she had planned a little bonding time for her and Britney. Joe was a lot easier, he was really easy to please. As Lenny said goodbye to the kids she got Joe ready and all 4 of them got in the car. She dropped Lenny off at work and Joe at his friends.

"So Britney, I hope you don't mind but I planned a little pamper day for us"

"I don't mind at all!" Linda smiled at her enthusiasm. The first place they stopped was the nail bar. She chose a French manicure while Britney chose to have hers painted blue. Next they went to the department store, and got some beauty treatments. Linda also bought Britney some makeup. She smiled to herself as she imagined Lenny's reaction; he thought she was far too young. But Linda had once been a teenage girl herself. A smile never left Britney's face and Linda was quite pleased with herself. They picked up some clothes and shoes and decided to head home.

Lenny and Joe were already back when they got in. Linda made the mistake of letting Lenny pick the movie and they ended up watching Happy Feet. Lenny and Joe were happy but Linda and Britney were a little bored.

As it neared her bed time Britney had still to take her last dose of insulin for the day. She put a fresh needle on her pen and turned the dial to the correct dose. She picked an area on her stomach and pinched the skin together, holding her breath as she pushed the needle in. She quickly injected the insulin and waited the required 10 seconds before pulling the needle out and binning it. She had asked for Nick Jordan to be her doctor, she liked him. He was funny and sweet. The only problem was that he wasn't a specialist in diabetes. She only had to drop the "kids in care, find it hard to bond" line and everything was transferred. Lenny wanted to do it but Britney thought of him as a brother and living with your doctor wouldn't be fun. She had an appointment with Mr. Jordan tomorrow. She finally climbed into bed and with a smile still on her face, drifted off to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Britney and Lenny walked through the doors of the ED. Lenny wasn't too happy about being here on his day off but Britney had an appointment with Mr. Jordan. Linda spotted them and smiled. She couldn't get any time off but she trusted Lenny could handle it.

"Britney, Dr. Lyons" Mr. Jordan greeted. She smiled back.

"How's it been going?" he asked.

"Okay, my blood sugar was a bit low yesterday but Lenny and Linda handled it" she replied honestly.

"That's to be expected; even the most experienced diabetics get low sometimes"

"I guess so"

"Anything else?" he asked.

"No not really, just a little nervous about going back to school".

"You'll be fine Britney; you've handled this better than most". Nick liked Britney. He could tell she was extremely intelligent and bright. She had had a hard life yet she still seemed so open and trusting. He was glad Lenny had opened up too. He had always worried about the younger doctor's people skills.

"We just need to take some blood for testing and unless you have anything else to discuss that's it". He quickly got the things required and got them ready. Britney held Lenny's hand as he slid the needle in. Seeing her own blood she quickly turned away and buried her head in his shoulder. Nick smiled at the pair and told them they were free to leave.

They still had hours before Linda and Joe were due home, so Lenny asked Britney if there was anything she wanted to do.

"Well, before all this care stuff happened I used to dance, can we go look at dance schools?"

It had been ages since she had danced. She longed for the feeling of the smooth ice and floor under her feet.

"Hi you two, how did the appointment go?"Linda asked.

"Fine, Britney was wondering if she could go look at dance schools."

"Oh, I didn't know you danced Britney" Linda said.

"Yeah, I did ballet" she smiled shyly.

"Well, if you find somewhere you like go for it!" Linda exclaimed.

After searching through a few dance schools Britney finally found the perfect place. It held a professional atmosphere yet the classes seemed relaxed and friendly. Britney was an extremely talented dancer and needed somewhere professional to challenge her. It was a traditional style ballet school where the girls wore black leotards and tights and the teachers were called Madame.

"What kind of work did you do Britney?" the head teacher asked.

"I was just doing some pointe work before I left" she answered.

"Well, in that case I would like you to bring your pointe shoes at 8 tomorrow morning for a private lesson to assess your abilities." Madame Smith told her.

Britney smiled at the teacher and she and Lenny went back to the car. They picked up Joe and met Linda at the ED. She decided to take them all out for dinner.

Britney was having a hard time picking what to eat. She was still learning to count her carbohydrates and everything seemed to scare her. Lenny noticed her frowning and peeked over her shoulder to glance at the menu.

"Have anything you want, we'll deal with the insulin later" he told her.

"Are you sure?" she asked uncertainly.

"Yeah, it's a one off. Diabetes shouldn't stop you doing anything!"He smiled.

After having dinner, including ice cream for Britney, the four of them headed home. Linda had rented out her spare room to Lenny and enjoyed the company. It helped having someone to deal with the kids.

Back at the flat Britney was trying to count up her adjust ted her dose and told her to look out the window as he quickly stabbed her.

"Hey!" she exclaimed, surprised.

"It's done now, isn't it?" he asked cheekily. She smiled gently as he tucked her into bed, excited for her dance lesson the next morning.

Quick question: should Lenny or Tom be with Linda? Thanks x


End file.
